42 CONTRIBUTIONS TO NORTH AMERICAN ICHTHYOLOGY—II. 
Soft parts of vertical fins, particularly the anal, with the membrane, 
clear orange; ventral fius bluish; cheeks with three bread bronze- 
orange bands, between which are bands of bluish-green; two bronze 
bands in front of eye; space beneath eye largely blue-green and iri- 
descent. 
Opercular flap not long, narrow, varying to rather wide, with a con- 
spicuous purple margin; iris red; pupil black. 
Size small. I have seen none over four inches in length. 
Habitat—Ohio Valley ; rather common in bayous and still places in 
small creeks. It occurs in company with Xenotis lythrochioris, and, like 
that species, is commonly among the treasures of the small boy as he 
comes back from the swimming-hole. 
This species much resembles the young of X. megalotis, the only spe- 
cies with which it need be compared. X. megalotis is more positively 
and brilliantly colored ; there is more blue ; the spines are l6wer, and the 
scales on the cheeks smaller. X. aureolus is chiefly of a golden orange, 
and in life has a translucency of hue unlike the colors of any other 
species. In spirits, it becomes of a pale yellowish or white. It is prob- 
able that Kirtland’s description of Pomotis macrochira was drawn up 
from a specimen of this species. It is certain, however, that Kirtland 
confounded two or three species under the name of macrochira, among 
them probably Lepiopomus pallidus. This cannot well be the species 
called macrochira by Rafinesque. I have therefore proposed the new 
name of awreolus, in allusion to its gilded coloration. 
26. XENOTIS INSCRIPTUS, (Agassiz) Jor. 
Pomotis inscriptus, AGASsiIz (1854), Amer. Journ. Sci. Arts, 302. 
Lepomis inscriptus, COPE (1869), Journ. Acad. Nat. Sci. Phila, —. 
Ichthelis inscriptus, JORDAN (1876), Manual Vert. 237. 
Xenotis inscriptus, JORDAN (1876), Ann. N. Y. Lye. Nat. Hist. —. 
Body oblong, little elevated, the depth 24 in length; profile and dor- 
sal outline forming a nearly uniform curve from snout to caudal pedun- 
cle; eye Jarge, larger than in megalotis ; mouth moderate; cheek-scales 
large. 
Pectoral fins short, not reaching anal; dorsal spines low, but high for 
this genus, more developél than in any of the other species, the long- 
est about as long as from snout to middle of pupil; ventral fins not 
reaching anal. 
A small compact handsome species of a dark color, not at all trans- 
lucent; color dark olive-green, with blue shades; cheeks with blue 
